What a PRO service actually does, and what it should cost

PRO stands for Public Relations Officer, but nothing about the job is public relations. A PRO is the person, or the outsourced company, who carries a company's paperwork to the government. Visas, labour cards, Emirates ID, licence renewals, tenancy registration and attestation all pass through someone's hands, and in most UAE companies that someone is the PRO.

The role exists because each authority has its own system, its own forms and its own queue. A PRO who knows which centre handles which step turns a week of confusion into a day of work. A PRO who does not know can leave a visa unfinished, miss a renewal and cost the company fines.

This guide describes what a PRO does, how they are paid and how to keep control of your own company file.

The list below covers most of a small company's year.

• Licence work with the emirate's economic department (DET in Dubai) or the free zone. Renewal, adding or removing an activity, changing the trade name, partner or manager, and cancellation.
• Tenancy registration. In Dubai, Ejari registration or renewal through the Dubai Land Department. Other emirates have their own systems, such as Tawtheeq in Abu Dhabi.
• Labour services with MOHRE. The establishment card, work permits for new hires, labour contract amendments, and cancellation when an employee leaves. Most of these are processed through Tasheel service centres.
• Immigration services. Entry permits, residence visas, status change, visa cancellation and medical-test bookings, in Dubai usually through Amer centres of the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA), and in the other emirates through the ICP's channels.
• Emirates ID. Application, renewal and replacement with the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP).
• Attestation. Certificates and contracts stamped by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and embassies.

Tax registration, VAT returns and Corporate Tax filings are tax-agent work, not PRO work. A PRO may register you on the portal, but accounting decisions belong with an accountant.

Every PRO invoice has two layers. The government fee is what the authority charges, and it should be passed on at cost with the receipt. The service fee is the PRO's charge for doing the work.

There are three common pricing models. A per-transaction fee typically costs AED 100 to 500 on top of government charges. An annual package of about AED 2,000 to 6,000 covers a set number of visa and renewal transactions. A monthly retainer suits companies with frequent hiring and runs from about AED 500 to 1,500 for a small business. These are typical Dubai figures; in the other emirates costs are often similar or somewhat lower.

Ask for the price list before you start. A PRO who quotes one lump sum for a visa and refuses to break it down is hiding either a large margin or an unreliable process. Government fees change, so compare the invoice with the authority's published tariff.

A company with ten or more staff, frequent hiring or several licences often does better with an in-house PRO on a salary of AED 4,000 to 8,000 a month. The person learns your files, and the cost per transaction falls as volume rises.

A company with fewer than ten employees and a handful of transactions a year usually pays less to outsource. The outsourced PRO carries the training and the system access, and you pay only when you use it.

Whichever you choose, the company, not the PRO, should hold the legal authority over the file. That means the owner or manager is the authorised signatory on the immigration and labour portals, and the PRO acts through a signed letter of authorisation that you can withdraw.

A company file is valuable. It carries your quota for visas, your labour record and your licence history. Use these controls.

1. Give originals only against a signed receipt that lists each document. Never leave an original passport, trade licence or Emirates ID with a PRO for longer than the transaction needs.
2. Keep the credentials. Do not share your UAE Pass password or one-time codes. If the PRO needs access, ask for the authorisation to be registered in the system rather than handing over your login.
3. Ask for the government receipt and the transaction number for every step, and check the status yourself on the authority's app or website.
4. Keep a renewal calendar for the licence, tenancy registration (Ejari in Dubai), establishment card and each employee's visa. Tell the PRO the dates, and check them as well.
5. Pay by bank transfer to a company account, not cash into a personal one.

A visa processed for AED 1,500 when other companies quote AED 3,500 may be cut-price, or it may be a transaction that is not fully paid to the authority.

Be careful too with a PRO who is the only person who knows your passwords, who becomes unreachable close to a deadline or who explains delays with a change in the rules that you cannot find on any government site.

Check the PRO company's own licence before you hire, as our guide on verifying a trade licence explains, and look for a documents clearing or related activity. Our explanation of documents clearing covers what that means.

Start by finding the true status. Check the transaction number on the authority's site or app, or ask a Tasheel or Amer centre to read it back to you. Often the problem is a missing document or an unpaid fee, and it can be fixed in a day.

If a visa has expired or a licence has lapsed because of the PRO's delay, write to the PRO immediately and keep the message. Overstay and late-renewal fines accrue daily, so moving fast limits the damage. Ask the PRO to confirm in writing who pays the fine.

If you cannot get your documents back, report it to the police in your emirate and ask the authority that issued the document for a replacement. For a dispute about fees, the consumer protection section of the emirate's economic department (DET in Dubai) takes complaints against licensed companies.